"Grandpa doesn't lie!"

When my boys were very young they had several opportunities to spend whole days with their grandfather, my dad.

One night, as I was putting them to bed, Clay told me that he was too scared to sleep. I asked what he was afraid of and he said "Monsters." I assured him that monsters weren't real. "They are real!" Clay insisted. "Why do you think they are real?" I inquired. "Grandpa told me they're real and Grandpa doesn't lie!"

I was sure Clay must have misunderstood my dad. I told him we would call Grandpa and Grandpa would tell him that monsters weren't real.

I spoke with my dad first, asking him what he had said to Clay about monsters. He chuckled, a little embarrassed, and said that Clay had brought up the subject. "So I told him I had caught all the monsters and buried them in my back yard."

Clay's reasoning: if Grandpa said he had caught a monster, then monsters are real!

We never know what things we say to children will stick with them and change their lives. Hopefully the things we say will build their self esteem and strengthen their testimonies. Or, at least make a good story!